[Closed] What difference a stem makes?

100mm is way to long so u will crash over the bars when u dh 70 shud be beter but 50mm with riser bars is best 4 dh

Depends what you're doing with the bike, and what sort of bike it is. 40mm is fine on a DH bike, but stick it on a race hardtail and it'll ruin it.

More info on bike and rider required I think...!

How tall are you, what bike is it and what kind of riding do you do?
A shorter stem will quicken up the steering and make the bike easier to chuck around, but if it's too short it'll affect climbing as your weight will be too far back, often leading to the front wheel popping up.
Try going down to 70mm and see what happens.

need more info, what bike? what riding? layback post?

Bike is rock lobster hardtail. 19" Used for general riding and currently adventure racing but will soon get myself in gear for a few mtb races.

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Think I am reasonably fast but maybe not so skilled.

6ft 1" in height but my knuckles don't drag on the floor so reach may be an issue at present

100mm is certainly towards the upper end of what's fashionable/considered normal these days (though I ride 100 to 120mm stems but I'm tall so it makes sense to me to keep it in proportion).

Shorter stem will make the steering feel lighter and will shift your weight back which may well give you more confidence on steeper stuff. It may however make the front end lift while doing steep climbs. Too short and the steering starts to get twitchy/wandery though so it depends very much on what (bike and trails) and how you ride. Shorter isn't always better.

100mm?! - what's the matter? do you not like your self very much?

60 would be nice on a fun bike like that, 70 at most.

FACT.

LOL.

etc.

100mm to 70mm is a big jump imo, it'll make a huge difference if you have only been used to 100mm

i've just swopped a 90mm for a 70mm on my cotic soul and also 6'1" and i feel i'm too far forward on steep dh sections, so i'd recommend changing to something like a 90mm or 80mm first

I often have trouble getting off the back of the bike and often end up over the bars or even worse, stopped from going over the bars by my nads.

on steep stuff? get yourself a QR seatcollar and start dropping your saddle. you wouldn't want to be doing that when racing, but xc races rarely have really steep stuff, do they? for recreational riding you'll find it makes a massive difference to how you're able to move around on the bike. for the sake of stopping for a second to drop the post, i stop, rather than be tapped in the nuts repeatedly!
i'd run a shorter stem too - but that's just what i'm used to.

Errr, aren't we forgetting fork length here?

I think the current fashion for short stem length is at least partly linked to the current fashion for longer forks and wider bars.

Short stem: more responsive steering
Wide bars, long forks/slack head-angle: less responsive steering

Not that I have any specific experience, but on a traditional geometry frame (i.e. not slack head angle) with ~100mm forks I don't think a 100mm stem is crazy for a tall rider. Especially if the bike is for XC racing.

If I were you I would get hold of a cheap/secondhand 80mm stem off eBay and try it. If you like it then buy a nicer one and sell the old one.

Over the years I've come down from 110 to 70 with no appreciable difference in climbing ability, but a little more confidence downhill. If you're feeling flush it might be worth considering a droppable seatpost, too?

Try a VRO stem from Syntace... http://www.syntace.com/index.cfm?pid=3&pk=389 well worth it. Have a couple now that have followed me around on several bike builds, including a Rock Lobster. 🙂

Shorter isn't always better.

You know my wife said something similar

Thought of a quick release seatcollar but I don't think I would ever bother to stop, put down seat continue to bottom, stop put seat back up continue. Seems too much faff to me.

Suppose there is no other way but to buy one and see. Or try someone elses before I buy.

In the first place that frame looks a bit small for you. Your seat looks very high unless you have disproportionately long legs for your body. It may just be the photograph itself though. Perhaps not necessarily small bbut it does look very short.
On paper the stem isn't too long for your riding and fork size but the best thing to do is get yourself down to your local, respected, bike shop and ask for their opinions and to try another stem size.
If you already like or need the reach then a layback post and 20mm less stem will help while moving your centre of gravity back.

You could also try dropping your saddle 5mm. This will impact slightly on your pedalling efficiency, but will make it easier to get off the saddle, and to 'hover' whilst pedalling on rough stuff. FWIW I have my MTB saddle a touch lower than my road saddle for these reasons.

In the first place that frame looks a bit small for you. Your seat looks very high unless you have disproportionately long legs for your body. It may just be the photograph itself though.

Think its just the photo. Was taken on the first day of ownership so who knows how it was set up. Frame based on standover height plus a knuckle = nads. Not the most technical way to measure frame height but probably all that is ever needed.

Don't really have a local respected bike shop. Although I do have local bike shops. Thought you lot would do instead. Just means my plan to smuggle another bike past the wife in small packages can continue with a stem.

Do drop the seat for social rides with mates a tiny bit and raise it again for races. Maybe under a cm but suprised at the difference it makes.

What is your inside leg measurement ? I'm also 6'1" ish and it's only recently that I realise I've been riding the wrong size bikes ie. 19" or large for 15+ years 😳

My inside leg is 31" and judging from the seatpost on the RL you must be around 34"+ and (unlike mine) your body is in proportion, therefore a 70mm stem or even shorter should be fine.

If you are having trouble 'getting off the back' try a narrower saddle and as previously suggested, drop your saddle a touch. A shorter stem will also help this. Lastly, experiment....often the complete opposite of what you think should work does the trick eg. flat bars

Another thought - how about getting some lessons ? It will probably save you lots of time + you'll get set-up advice and the cost will be less than umpteen bar/stem changes - see Jedi (ad on here) who comes highly recommended.

"I often have trouble getting off the back of the bike"

Lower your torso with more bent elbows. Now straighten your arms and legs to push youself back from that position. Suprising how much more all-round movement you can get with a lower torso.

I once had a Merlin Malt 4 which I believe is the same geometry as the RL (could be wrong on that though). I tried a 70mm stem on it and it felt way too twitchy. Settled on a 90mm in the end.

My inside leg is 31" and judging from the seatpost on the RL you must be around 34"+ and (unlike mine) your body is in proportion, therefore a 70mm stem or even shorter should be fine.

32" inside leg. Wouldn't want a bigger bike. Got loads of seat post left and if anything would happily go down an inch. I am guessing its the photo angle? or it may have been too high at that point? Current seat post length is def fine although I do put it down slightly for casual rides and up again for fast rides or races.

Another thought - how about getting some lessons ? It will probably save you lots of time + you'll get set-up advice and the cost will be less than umpteen bar/stem changes - see Jedi (ad on here) who comes highly recommended.

Was a thought though, cheers for the recommend

Lower your torso with more bent elbows. Now straighten your arms and legs to push youself back from that position. Suprising how much more all-round movement you can get with a lower torso.

32" inside leg. Wouldn't want a bigger bike.

I swapped all mu bikes from 100mm down to 70mm. Didn't loose anything on the ups but more control on the way down. But steering will be quicker.
Found 60mm to short for normal trail/xc bikes.

Pop into your local shop, explain your problem and ask if they have any cheap stems. Then you can have a little play around without spendinng to much. I use Bontrager stems for set up and then moved to Thomsom when i was sure. Now lend out the old Bonti stems to mates.

I went from 100mm to 70mm recommended by a mate and don't regret it - quickened up steering and the Descents are much less hairy - I have some talas forks so on the very steep clims I can wind them down but TBH not I am used to it I dont wind then down quite as regularly 🙂

Has anybody mentioned top-tube length yet? In case they haven't I will.

I looked at getting a Rock Lobster a while back and didn't because they have a very short top-tube. One of the reasons that shorter stems have become more popular is that top-tube lengths have gotten longer.

I would have to have used a 110mm stem on a Rock Lobster to get the same reach as an Inbred/Soul with a 90mm stem.

when i dropped from 125 to 90 years ago I was amazed the difference in handling. Way easier to do (small) trail manuals and steering is way more responsive. But a cheap 70mm from the classifiedds, try it, sell it if you don't like it. Tinker away...

Poppa makes a great point about geometry. I had a 120mm stem with a steep-angled head-tube and 80mm forks. I found it horribly wandery and unstable when climbing and downright worrying when descending. I now have a 90mm stem - and the obligatory wider riser bars - and it has transformed the handling both up and down hill (and along!).

I'd recommend borrowing off a friend and seeing how you get on

@ 6'5" I use a 100mm stem with 10 degree rise which makes it more like a 90mm stem along with a lay back seat post and very wide bars on a cove HJ with 140mm revs and feels spot on for ME, climbs and descends well. I tried a few different options before settling on this. I get some people saying to me that the stems to long, how do they know what's right for me if there 5'10"? All the mags said everyone should be running 70 stems etc a while back and its a load of pants, yes shorter stems can be better but find out what works by trial and error. Its the only way to find out what works for YOU. And your seat post looks fine, its near a neutral position to your bars without tons of spacers. If you go for a much shorter stem remember it will drop your bar height and if your at the top end of the steerer you will need a rise on the stem.

Sounds familiar...I'm 6' (32in leg) and got a 19" Merlin Malt 1 some time back when I rediscovered mountain biking after years away road-cycling. The bike was delivered with a 100mm stem (could have been slightly longer) and I guess it has similar geometry to yours with 100mm travel forks.

Same problems: Couldn't get off the back, steering was soooo slow that spent most of my time landing on the obstacle rather than avoiding it. It was like riding a gate, and the 17" frame would have been too short for me. It really pee'd me off to me honest and I started to think that the limited skills I thought I did have back-in-the-day might have been a figment of my imagination...

Then I changed the stem to a 70mm Thomson and the bike was transformed. So much more planted and enjoyable. It did take a bit of tweaking mind you to get it perfect, mainly to get the reach to feel natural again: Seat moved back, stack height changed to lower the bars.

Cheers.

PS. I'd also agree that the 17 or 19in frame size does not help one bit. I'm currently rebuilding the bike with an 18in HT frame with a slightly longer TT length, but I'll still use the 70mm stem.